


Welcome Home

by WolfenM



Category: Stargate - All Series, Stargate SG-1
Genre: Angst, Character Study, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Episode Related, Episode Tag, Families of Choice, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Hurt/Comfort, Introspection, Light Angst, Loneliness, Lonliness, POV Daniel Jackson, POV First Person, POV Vala Mal Doran, Pre-Relationship, Romance, Team as Family, absence makes the heart grow fonder
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-16
Updated: 2016-10-16
Packaged: 2018-08-22 16:42:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,435
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8292745
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfenM/pseuds/WolfenM
Summary: Daniel returns home injured after the events of the Stargate Atlantis ep, "The Lost Tribe"; Vala works at curbing her enthusiasm.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written circa late 2008, tweaked slightly for this reposting (I figure it's about time I get my Stargate stuff posted over here). AR from the end of "The Lost Tribe" onward. This was actually originally the start of an RPG thread for a fan-run Stargate game where I played Daniel and Vala. But I thought it worked well as a ficlet. ;)
> 
> DISCLAIMER: Daniel Jackson, Vala Mal Doran, Jack O'Neill, Sam Carter, Teal'c, Cameron Mitchell, Carolyn Lam, Walter, General Landry, Bra'tac, Adria, Rodney McKay, John Sheppard, Teyla Emmagan, Jennifer Keller, the Stargate, the cityship Atlantis, the Wraith, the Attero device, and the Ori ©/TM Stargate (II) Productions, Kawoosh Productions, The SCI FI Channel, Showtime/Viacom, Sony/MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, Gekko Productions.

Vala bounced on her heels at the bottom of the ramp in the 'Gateroom, throwing impatient glances up at the control room window and biting her lip anxiously. They'd told her yesterday that Daniel had been seriously injured on his mission, but the Atlantis 'Gate had been destroyed, so they'd had to wait to send him home. Carolyn assured Vala that Daniel was going to be fine after a few weeks, but Landry wanted the man here at the SGC for his convalescence. Vala had nearly kissed General Landry when she'd heard that; if he hadn't made such an order, she would have had to go through a lot of trouble to sneak through the 'Gate herself .... She _almost_ forgave the general for not letting her go with in the first place.

She felt a hand on each shoulder and suddenly found her feet firmly pressed to the floor; one hand was Mitchell's, the other Teal'c's.

"You're worse than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs, woman," Mitchell told her quietly. "Jackson's gonna be _fine_."

Chastened, she nodded, despite not really being convinced.

Walter announced an incoming wormhole, the chevrons lighting up one by one. It wasn't until the event horizon kawooshed into sight that Vala let out a shaky breath and realised she's been holding it in the first place; she'd been half afraid that the scientists on the other end wouldn't be able to get the new 'Gate working. In fact, she was still nervous that something horrible would happen. She held her breath again.

Pairs of feet, knees, and hands came through the 'Gate first, followed by Daniel's familiar face; he was being pushed through the 'Gate in a wheelchair. Vala tried to hurry up the ramp to meet him, and found that Mitchell's and Teal'c's hands were still firmly clamped to her shoulders.

"Daniel!" she called out, greeting him as hard as she could with her voice, seeing as the guys wouldn't let her greet him with her body.

He granted her a smile, albeit a rueful one. "Vala, Mitchell, Sam. Teal'c! I thought you were on Chulak?" Daniel asked as some stranger wheeled him closer.

"The council is adjourned for the moment," Teal'c replied. Vala wondered why he didn't mention that it had been adjourned in the first place so that Teal'c could be here to greet his like-a-brother friend upon his return. The council had been present when Teal'c had been informed of what had happened to Daniel. Apparently Teal'c refused to leave while the council was in session, though; Bra'tac had then insisted that it was in the best interest of Jaffa-Tau'ri relations to have Teal'c be there when Daniel returned, and convinced the council as a whole to stand down for the duration. Vala _had_ kissed Bra'tac when he'd come through the 'Gate and related the story.

"Welcome home, Jackson," Mitchell greeted him cheerfully with a nod. "Look, we even managed to keep the SGC in one peace while you were gone!"

Daniel laughed, but the laugh quickly turned to a grimace of pain.

Vala tried to step forward again to greet Daniel better, desperate to confirm with her own hands that he was hale and whole, but Mitchell and Teal'c still wouldn't let go. She considered stomping on Mitchell's foot.

While Sam gave Daniel ginger greetings, Mitchell leaned in to Vala's ear and whispered, "He _is_ gonna be fine, but he's _hurting_ right _now_. So don't go jumpin' all over him. Okay?"

"I wasn't _going_ to!" she hissed, glaring at him. In his eyes, she saw that he knew her too well, though — and also found kind understanding. She melted a little, knowing he wasn't trying to be harsh with her. "I'll behave. I _promise_ ," she assured him.

Mitchell nodded, but didn't release her.

Bra'tac and Landry had finished their own hellos while Vala had been occupied with Mitchell; Dr Lam had then taken over control of the wheelchair from the medic escort, who then gave what seemed an endless report on Daniel's condition. When the medic finally finished, Lam began wheeling Daniel out of the room; only then, did Mitchell nd Teal'c relinquish their hold. Vala fell into step beside the chair, only vaguely aware that others followed them.

"H-how are you feeling?" Vala asked lightly, keeping her hands clasped behind her so as to restrain herself from touching him.

"Oh, about as fine as one can be after being struck by lightning, I suppose," he answered equally lightly, a note of discomfort in his voice.

" _Lightning?_ " she squeaked.

"Yeaaah ... Look, Vala, it's ... it's kind of a _long story_ , and I'm kinda _tired_ ," he replied, not unkindly.

"Oh! Oh, right ... o-of course," she said with a nervous laugh. "Mum's the word." She made a gesture like she'd zipped her lip shut and threw away a key. She didn't stop walking with them, though, and a minute or two later, she couldn't keep quiet anymore. "I-I'm glad you're back, though ...." she started tentatively.

He sighed. "Let me guess: you were bored?"

"No!" she insisted, although he wasn't entirely wrong. "Mitchell and I went with Dr Lam to P34-297 to inoculate some villagers, and I kept the children regaled with stories of my adventures!" Truth be told, it was the most attention anyone had paid her in ages. And one little girl in particular had reminded her of Adria, making her wonder, not for the first time, what her life would have been like now if her daughter hadn't grown up overnight to become the leader of the most frightening cult in two galaxies. She hadn't been able to sleep that night, plagued with nightmares despite the war being over; she'd wished Daniel had been there for her to talk to. He was a good listener (when he wanted to be) and always knew the right thing to say to make her feel better. She only hoped she managed to do the same for him at least _some_ of the time .... "Really, though, I ... I just _missed_ you, is all," she finished, shrugging, eyes on the floor.

A moment later, she felt his large hand enveloped her small one, giving it a squeeze. "I missed you, too," he admitted, sounding a bit rueful.

She squeezed his hand back, beaming. She might have skipped a little, too.

  


* * *

Daniel never thought he would be so happy to leave Atlantis, but as he was wheeled through the event horizon into the SGC, he couldn't deny it: it was good to be home. It wasn't like there was a lot he could comfortably do anyway, and it was a slow sort of torture, being so close to all that Ancient knowledge and not being able to do anything about it. And it was dreadfully dull, sitting there in the infirmary; Sheppard, Teyla, Keller, even Rodney — they were all nice people, all stopped by to see him now and then, but he didn't have much of a history with any of them aside from Rodney, and he could only take McKay in small doses. ( _Very_ small.) No, better he were in his own infirmary, with his friends-that-were-like-family.

Yes, even Vala.

In fact, Rodney had reminded Daniel of her, in a weird way — headstrong, hyper, self-centered, yet surprising you by being momentarily uncertain and vulnerable, and by helpful and considerate when you least expected it. Daniel had come to like Rodney in spite of himself, just as had happened with Vala. He just wished there were a way to cultivate the better qualities of both of them, and tone down the annoying ones .... He felt a little twinge of fondness as Vala called out her anxious greeting — although he was grateful to Teal'c and Mitchell for restraining her. Vala would most certainly hurt him more, with her tendency to climb all over him.

He was surprised but glad to see Teal'c, feeling a momentary surge of nostalgia for their old SG-1 days at the sight of the team all together like that. All they needed was Jack .... Well, Daniel knew Jack was a busy guy and couldn't blame him for not being there, It had been a long time since Jack _had_ been there when Daniel was hurt, really. Daniel knew family tended to drift, but having been denied a real family growing up, and having been denied a life with his wife, with a child, he sometimes — childishly, selfishly — thought he should have that family time with interest now, with the family he'd found in adulthood.

Then Mitchell had to go and make him laugh, in what was clearly an attempt to kill him; Daniel found himself in momentary agony. Just wait, the next time Mitchell was recovering from a near-mortal wound ....

The pain passed, and Daniel said hello to Bra'tac, Sam, and Landry. As he exchanged greetings, Daniel could sense Vala still straining to greet him, then suddenly grow subdued; He wondered what Mitchell said to her to calm her? Whatever he'd done, it was (almost) enough to get Daniel to forgive Mitchell for making him laugh. An excitable Vala was bound to do something to make Daniel yell at her in frustration, and he didn't really want to do that.

Daniel barely restrained himself from rolling his eyes as the medic who had delivered him through the gate gave Lam the most up-to-date update (was that redundant?) on his condition. Really, couldn't they let him get to a bed first? Finally, Lam took charge of his wheelchair and began to wheel him to the infirmary; Mitchell and Teal'c let Vala go then, and she, miraculously restrained herself from trying to jump into his lap, the way he'd expected she would. She just fell in step beside his chair, forcing everyone who was trying to walk in the opposite direction in the hall to squish themselves flat against the wall. Funny thing was, Daniel had the distinct impression that they were all eyeing them _both_ with a weird mix of pity and fondness, rather than being annoyed at the inconvenience.

Daniel suppressed the urge to insist there was nothing for them to see here.

For a time, Vala was uncharacteristically quiet — enough to be unsettling. He was almost relieved when she finally asked how he was. He tried to be light in his response, but wasn't fully able to mask the pain he was in, and had to beg off of giving a longer explanation. Talking hurt. So did breathing, really. And sitting up.

Vala, blessedly, kept quiet for a whole two minutes; he knew because he was too tired to keep his head up, his eyes resting on his watch.

Then she started to speak; he should have known he wasn't going to get off that easy. He supposed he ought to be flattered that she was glad he was back, but he knew it was only because he was her favourite plaything.

"Let me guess: you were bored?" he asked.

She tried to deny it, mentioning the mission she'd gone on while he was gone. He felt sorry for Lam and Mitchell, having to play babysitter; it sounded like he owed them, and Landry as well. Then again, if Daniel had been dealing with both Rodney _and_ Vala, they might never have found the key to the Attero device, and the Wraith might even have undergone Keller's treatment. Rodney had had a point when he'd said they would have been better off if Daniel had never come. It was the Ori all over again. Hell, and the Goa'uld, too — if Daniel hadn't found the way to use the Stargate, the Goa'uld might never have stumbled across Earth again. And wasn't it sad that telling himself that they likely _would_ have, sooner or later, made him feel better?

Daniel was distracted from his musings by the strange, wistful look on Vala got on her face as she mentioned telling stories to the children. She could deny having motherly feelings for Adria all she wanted, but her eyes said otherwise. It was moments like this that drove home for Daniel just how lonely Vala had been for so long, and how her experiences had driven her to become the seemingly-selfish space pirate. The more he'd gotten to know her, the more he'd seen of the gentle, caring, self _less_ soul beneath her tough facade. The more he saw of that, the more he wanted to _keep_ seeing it — hence his convincing Landry to let her stay in the first place. She was like a wild animal that was still being tamed — you had to be wary of her still, but there was hope that one day she would stay, of her own accord, and curl up beside you without worry of turning on you suddenly.

His heart broke a little, in an oddly good way, when she said she'd missed him. He reached out to her, in more ways than one, taking her hand and telling her that he'd missed her, too. And he wasn't just saying it: silence wasn't as comforting as it had once been. Vala had become his soothing white noise, their banter like an old, comfortable robe — he'd kind of forgotten how to conduct his research _without_ her around. That was half of why Daniel had made sure that Woolsey made _Rodney_ work with him, rather than someone else. In fact, the real reason Vala hadn't been allowed along was simply so that he wouldn't have to spend his time making sure she didn't get into trouble treasure-hunting, and _not_ because he thought she would pester him endlessly. (Of course, Rodney was a _bit_ more useful as a research assistant, too, but Daniel had to admit that Vala was getting better on that front ....)

They finally reached the infirmary and got him into a bed (despite Vala's clumsy and painful-for-Daniel attempts to help). Lam insisted on poking and prodding him (why was it that, in making you feel better, doctors frequently made you feel far worse?), but Vala's questions to her and constant efforts to be comforting to Daniel were actually ... _comforting_ — if only in that they were so familiarly grating. Soon, he drifted off to sleep.

He didn't know how long he stayed that way, but when he opened his eyes again later, just for a few moments, he saw Vala curled on the bed next to his, fast asleep. He drifted back into dreams with a smile playing at his lips, wondering how long it would take for her to discover the little present he had for her in his jacket ....

~ Fin ~

**Author's Note:**

> If you've enjoyed my writing, I invite you to explore my original fantasy storyverse, [Gaiankind](http://gaiankind.com)! You can even find Gaiankind stories for free [here](http://archiveofourown.org/tags/Gaiankind) on AO3!


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